the local

Location: Sacred Heart  @levi-carstairs​

Uly had washed up before making their way to the Hospital’s cafeteria - they weren’t sure if that was the correct word people used for the place where they hate, but given the the quality of the food, they almost wanted to call it a restaurant - a little fresher than they had arrived the day before to their shift. They checked their phone to note down that they had almost twenty-four hours on the clock, meaning another twelve before they were done. Perhaps some food and a quick nap before the next surgery would help with the final lap. 

“Any sandwiches without meat left?” Uly asked, though from the way the lunch lady looked at them, Uly knew they didn’t have to ask. They knew about their condition by now. She told them she would look in the back for something, Uly waited. They were far too late for lunch. 

They checked their phone again when they noticed someone queue’ing up behind them. They recognised Levi instantly now, for reasons. Reasons they were yet to actually touch on. “Hey, you also on lunch break?” they asked. Though they knew the two of them had suggested lunching earlier, Uly had completely forgotten due to their schedule. 

-

“No, I’m sneaking out for some snacks.” Levi joked, smiling winningly at Uly as they queued up right behind them. He did not forget their standing agreement to have lunch together one of these days, and it seemed fate had decided to intervene on their behalf - lucky. “Better fare than other hospitals, am I right?” He spoke, as always enthused by the prospect of good food, greeting the servers by name as they doled out his order in generous portions. 

“Here you go, doctor.” Rosie, one of the long-time lunch ladies who worked at the Hospital cafeteria came out from the back, handing Uly a wrapped sandwich on a plate. She rolled her eyes fondly when Levi in turn winked at her, clicking her tongue in a show of disapproval at his antics. “Excellent service as usual, Rosie m’dear.” Levi lifted his fingers to salute her, before nudging Uly gently with edge of his full tray.  

She glared in response to his question, pressing her lips together into a thin line as she held back her knee-jerk reaction to any mention of love, which was outright denial. It would have been a waste of breath, anyway — it wasn’t a secret that Levi was one of the few people that had managed to firmly take root in her heart, despite her early efforts to scare him away. She would maybe even go as far as to call him something akin to family, if the idea didn’t automatically make her recoil. Family had never held a positive connotation for her. 

She thought that it would be more accurate to call him home. 

Juliet held back a small smile when she felt him stroking her hair, opting instead to move so she was hovering over him again, her face directly above his. “Is that a challenge?” she shot back, the glint of mischief in her eyes signaling trouble. Really, he should have known better by now. She lowered her head until her lips were only a hair’s breadth away from his, smirking as she spoke. “Still comfortable?” 

-

This light, flirtatious banter was nothing new to the pair of them - it was a thin line they often skated on. While Levi could comfortably say that his and Juliet’s relationship defied normal labels and boundaries, it was something that many people in their lives did not fully understand, even to this day. 

He could no longer count how many times he’d been questioned - by friends and family alike - regarding the extent of his feelings for Juliet. Hell, their closeness had been a longstanding point of contention between him and his ex-wife. When they’d first started dating, he had to reassure her constantly of his loyalty - that while Juliet was simply someone he could not live without, Leah had been the one he’d chosen to live the rest of his life with. Or so he thought.

“Mwah!” Levi made an exaggerated kissing noise, but he angled his face in such a way that his lips landed on her cheek instead. He then switched over to her other cheek, her chin, her forehead - eyes laughing as he continued to pepper kisses on her face. Acts of affection would never faze him after all - but they have proven to be Juliet’s undoing in the past. 

( time skip. )

Silver was still kind of disappointed with the fact that in the end he never managed to get away from Jo; running straight into her while trying to escape was definitely that one thing he wanted to avoid, which also ended in him being kept up for so long that he ended up running away once again, muttering a quick sorry to Levi and something about having to get back to his Sentinel duties. It was a really obvious lie, one he later explained in dozens of text messages - but he still felt bad about it, hence his proposal of organizing a movie night in which they could also include his cat. Maybe he should’ve messaged Teddy if he wanted to take Kitty Cat for the week but his earlier messages went unanswered too; so he decided to give up on it and not to overthink.

After all he had a movie night to organize - which also included him trying to actually cook something that wasn’t already half-made or in a box. He settled for the most basic mac and cheese recipe he could find online - but he was stressing about it anyway, muttering to himself about making a terrible mistake; and also trying to keep the cat away from the pots and pans before it accidentally burnt itself. He never even realized that it was such a hassle until he tried it on his own - which just made him realize that he could never deal with kids running around him like that, and also that he should never try to experiment in the kitchen ever again. Thank god he didn’t try baking - that would probably end up in his absolute humiliation in front of Levi and having to admit that he actually used a boxed cake mix, because he has like… to left hands when it came to kitchen things.

He was somewhere halfway to finishing when he heard the knock on the door; cat in one hand ( and his will to live in the other ) he ran to open and then back to the kitchen before anything would burn - Juliet would probably kick his ass if he burnt anything, and also the shame that would come with it… yikes. “Sorry for leaving you like that, but I’m trying not to burn the kitchen… But make yourself comfortable and be careful, we have a tiny cat around this time.” Honestly, he couldn’t remember if he ever told Levi about Kitty Cat; but oh well, they can make friends with each other while he tries to keep the kitchen intact. “His name is Kitty Cat, if u eventually wanted to make friends with him.”

-

After his parents’ house and his own place, Levi considered Juliet and Silver’s condo as his third home. Though Juliet’s heavy-handed gothic-influenced decorating left much to be desired - at complete odds with his own open floor plan apartment, with lots of greenery and natural light - he had somehow learned how to deal over time. He still insisted though that most of her paintings followed him with their eyes. 

And while Levi did have his own key, he still tried to use it sparingly, mostly when he cooked too much and had leftovers, slipping into their home to stock their fridge, knowing between the two of them, they’d either starve or binge on unhealthy pre-packaged meals if he didn’t do this on a regular basis. 

“Kitty Cat, really?” Unfazed with this new addition to their household, Levi put out his fingers gently for the kitten to inspect, and once his touched was deemed acceptable he stroked his head gently, chuckling lightly to himself when it purred contentedly in response. “Of course we’re going to be good friends, no one can resistance my charms after all.” He spoke, looking up at Silver with a conspiratorial wink.

OPEN Location: Voodoo

She was being dramatic. She knew that… but she couldn’t be too careful. Once things start feeling like they’re getting back to normal, like she didn’t have to keep glancing over her shoulder every now and then, like there wasn’t something inside of her that was telling her to just bolt right out of there, then her tendency for the dramatics will be put on hold… but till then, she’ll keep them up as her very flimsy shield. 

She pushed her ridiculously large sunglasses further up her face, tugging down the top of the hoodie a tad bit more so it covered her face before leaning forward in an attempt to be nondescript. 

Dev didn’t know how to be nondescript. 

She tensed only slightly as someone occupied the bar stool next to her, ducking down to further hide herself. 

That was Devery Dupont. 

It was clear as day, despite her rather desperate attempt to disguise herself in an oversized hoodie and sunglasses - in fact, with her current attire, she only managed to stand out more at the bar, people giving her sideways glances before moving on rather quickly. 

Levi hesitated - he was supposed to meet a couple of colleagues at the bar that night, but some unknown force had him heading over to her. He paused just as he was about to enter her line of vision - wondering if he really wanted to deal with her dramatic tendencies right now - before soldiering on and sliding into the empty seat next to her. 

She pointedly scowled at his displays of affection, though she was helpless to stop the grin that settled on her lips. They’d always been opposites, both in physique and temperament — the Gentle Giant and Tiny Devil, as their high school classmates had liked to say. Juliet didn’t even remember how exactly they’d become friends, though she would bet that it began when she’d realized Levi was very well loved, and dragging him along with her ensured that whatever mayhem she caused would only be met with a gentle slap on the wrist. And somewhere along the way, they’d developed a genuine friendship (though she was still not above using him as a get-out-of-jail-free card). 

But the sentimentality she felt was not present in the way she rushed at him, deftly spinning at the last second to position herself behind him, interlacing his fingers with hers and kicking in the back of his knees. They spun together towards the ground, somehow elegant within the chaos, with Juliet twisting so she ended up on top of him, her hands in his, rendering his own arms immobile for a short second. 

This time, the scowl was real as she considered his question, knowing it had been posed to irk her, but unable to curb the annoyance that played on her features. 

“Do you know what’s great about being short, Jeanie?” She rested her head on his chest, right on top of his heart. “Being close to your heart, so I know exactly where to stab you, if you ever replace me.” 

Juliet was a spitfire if there ever was one, and Levi did not know whether to roll his eyes in exasperation or look up at her in sheer admiration when she effectively pinned him to the ground - a feat of skill more than strength, though she had plenty to spare for both. The fact that Juliet resorted to physical violence and actual threads to express any amount of affection towards him was so painfully familiar that he couldn’t help the grin that blossomed on his face, despite the fact his arms ached slightly from the position she kept them in. 

“Will you truly be able to act on that threat, given how much you love me?” Levi shot back tauntingly. He used words like love and devotion so liberally that some thought him shallow for it, even if he meant each avowal and declaration every single time. “Honestly Midge, saying I miss you by bruising my wrists and kneeling on my abs...I thought you’ve outgrown all that.” 

As a sociable creature, Levi considered himself to a countless number of friends, but at the end of the day, there were only a sure handful that he’d go to impossible lengths for. The fact that Juliet hated to hear it spoken out loud only made Levi repeat it that more often, perhaps in the hope that she’d one day accept the fact that he loved her, fully and unconditionally. 

He felt a pang in his chest when she laid her head right above his beating heart, stroking her hair absentmindedly in response. “I’m very comfortable lying here, so don’t expect me to try and get up anytime soon.” 

Someone save him from this misery, Max thought as his kind gesture was thrown back into his face, he wasn’t sure how to respond to that, since annoyance was closest to his thoughts, and showing that was out of the question. “English humour,” he said, with a face as if he was about to take a sip from some overly expensive cognac and tell another joke. He had little patience for being questioned about his choice of words, clearly he wasn’t talking to someone with any sense of language. 

He hated this kid already, which, five sentences in, wasn’t much of a special feat. Max judged, albeit silently, carefully, and without giving anything away. He just extended a smile of normalcy and propped the goat a little higher up to his armpit, before carefully putting both arms under neat its tiny arms as if handling a newborn baby. He could fake all the care he wanted and never get sick of his own behaviour. It was all a means to an end. Though he was going to miss his little furry shield, given how soft the young man’s eyes grew at the sight of the animal, and how sceptical they seemed to be of him. One didn’t live through life the way he had without dealing with any kind of judgement. “I think that would be best, before I no longer know how to part from him,” Max offered with a grin, though ensuring he was clear in his movements that parting from the goat wasn’t all jest. And with the goat gone, Max knew he would have to actually help with the clean up, so he fiddled with his cufflinks to pull up the sleeves of the suit. He would send it to the dryer after and purchase an new one somewhere. 

-

Levi liked to think he was the soul of patience and congeniality - it had been hammered into him, after all, by his loving mother from a young age - and perhaps it was only because of the “incident” and the sorry state of his overturned booth that the other man’s expression and manner set him slightly on edge. 

At first glance, he seemed alright, if a little too upright and polished for Levi’s tastes. A man who clung so desperately to a baby goat to ensure its safety ( all the while its fur clinging to his fancy suit ) couldn’t be that bad, after all. “Guess it flew over my head then, this English humour of yours.” Levi spoke dryly, before gently taking the goat from his arms, brow furrowing slightly at the initial resistance before his grip slackened and he let the animal go. 

“Be a good kid, alright.” He murmured softly to the animal, letting it nip at his fingers before stroking it once more on the head. Levi then turned to the other man once more, eyebrow raised and hand gesturing grandly as he moved forward. “Are you still up for helping, then?” He asked, tilting his head sideways. “If you are, I suggest removing that jacket of yours. Wouldn’t want to ruin it, after all.” 

Charlie smirked at the man’s jokes, at the playfulness he gave him in response to all of it. Levi was a good man, did his family proud and did Oleander the same. They were lucky to have the Carstairs, Levi especially, under their ranks and Charlie had long since thought that if ever the Sol line lost it’s legacy of being Head of House, it would be a Carstair that took it up. Though he didn’t like to imagine what events would lead up to a turnover like that. While they dealt with their fair share of infighting within Oleander, it had very rarely lead to a mass uprising or falling out. And if it had, it was done under extremely calculated circumstances. Thomas, for example. 

Though he wasn’t allowed to dwell long on the thoughts, unable to hide the smile at the man’s jokes. “That joke was pure cheddar, Levi,” Charlie gave back to him, his own love for Dad jokes stemming from raising children of his own. 

Levi’s eyes widened, and somewhere all of his aunts (and some uncles), siblings and cousins who had a crush on their esteemed Head of House (which was a good chunk of the Carstairs bloodline) would have fainted simultaneously at Charlie Sol’s wonderful yet oh so terrible attempt at a joke. 

Really, it was a crime for someone to be that good looking and to actually possess a functioning sense of humour.

“I think you’ve just made me fall in love with you, Mr. Sol.” Levi spoke with mock gravity, though the sparkle in his eyes gave him away. Levi paused to wonder how Charlie would react to such a declaration of devotion, even if he certainly knew it was only made in partial jest. “I know you’re an honourable man, so I’m certain you’ll take responsibility.” 

He actually knew that Levi was right; it wouldn’t even have been so hard to say yes, especially that he considered it, but then again… “Okay, okay, I’ll think about it.” He let out a little laugh, taking back the strand of hair from between Levi’s fingers. “Did you all get you own cakes too? Because the last thing I’d want to do is… overshadow you in any way.” There were many times when he thought of returning their kindness in some way; after all they were the only family he ever had, who didn’t treat him as some kind of a prop, and to be fairly honest he frequently wondered if he even deserved that.

“Okay but listen… She’s great at that. She almost got out all my secrets too, but then I ran away from her.” He still remembered that, being metaphorically pinned to ground by all those questions the girl asked her and slowly panicking that he’d say that few words too much - so he ended up using the worst way out, literally running away and locking himself up in the bathroom, before Levi’s dad convinced him to come out and try the banana bread. “Anyway, ring me up so I can make my escape? I’ll wait for you behind that tent where Jo won’t be able to see me.” 

-

“I’m afraid with your beautiful silver hair alone, we are already overshadowed, and we welcome it.” Levi spoke solemnly, his expression a picture of contentment and serenity before he broke out into bright, easy laughter. Honestly, he sometimes thought his large, boisterous family would be too much for Silver, who was more quiet and careful than even his most reserved cousin, though knowing anyone with Carstairs blood, that wasn’t saying much. 

Levi knew he was lucky to be part of such a loving, open family - not many could claim otherwise, and this was only made more apparent to him when he brought Juliet home for the first time and she stiffened in his mother’s embrace, or when Silver shied away from any overt sign of affection but would constantly offer his assistance around the house, wherever he could. As if he had to constantly prove himself useful. 

“You should run, far and fast. Even when you see her just turning the corner.” Jo was a firecracker, as were most Carstairs’ women, and she often stuck her nose in things that weren’t her business. Levi’s lips quirked up slightly, remembering that day vividly - when Silver’s only means of escape had been to actually bolt and lock himself up in one of their downstairs bathrooms. It was the first time he’d actually seen Jo embarrassed, and he had relished it. “You got it.” Levi said cheerfully, looking forward to spending some time with his friend and wondering impatiently where his cousin was, exactly. “Put your hair away - it’s a walking beacon, all liquid moonlight and you know it.” 

They smiled kindly when the baker’s son said it was no big deal, they still apologised though, even though they knew they would tend to forget anyway. But when Levi said his name, things finally began to make sense to Uly, and they nodded, clearly impressed. “Well, in that case, nice to formally meet you, Levi,” he said, holding out his hand, the box balancing on his other hand. 

“A lot of things by day it would seem, but Physical therapist, that means we have some overlap. I think I remember your name,” they noted. “Though could be I also say that to sound like I’m actually good at remembering things.” 

Uly could not keep the satisfied grin from their face when Levi noted their reputation, they weren’t new to praise, at least not in the last year, but it was good to hear. It was correct, of course. “New and talented,” they said. “I like that.” 

“Glad to make the acquaintance of some more people from the hospital. I know most from surgery now, but the rest of the hospital remains a mystery to me. And Nina and Daphne, the nurses at the ER,” he said. 

Levi returned their grin for grin - it was honestly refreshing, their easy acknowledgement of such accolades, with none of the false modesty that qualified for “acceptable” social behavior in such situations.  He could tell they took pride in their work, and for a moment Levi felt a stab of jealously, which he buried quite easily behind a teasing expression. “Smart, easy on the eyes, but not so keen on memorization - all the rumours so far seem to be true.”

“Oh if you need some insight on all of Sacred Heart’s inner workings, I’m your man!” Levi thumped his chest. His friendship was often easily won and easily offered. He had incidents where people were somewhat put off by his forward, sometimes over-friendly nature. He hoped Uly wouldn’t be one of him, but if they were, Juliet had taught him how not to give a damn after so many years of drilling it into his skull. “And this is not limited to the hospital - if you want your own, personal guide to all things Asphodel, you only have to holler.” 

Feeling somewhat put out that their conversation was coming to a close - since their transaction was well and done anyway - Levi attempted to throw another invitation their way. “We could have lunch sometime, at the Hospital cafeteria. Sacred Heart’s fare is surprisingly good, if the standards is all the other tasteless hospital food around the country.” He spoke jokingly. 

✰

She gave a huff that was both an acknowledgement of his question and a show of frustration that his instincts towards her hadn’t rusted. Because, really, what else could be expected from their reunion? Juliet had never been great at showing affection — tackles and play fighting were the closest she got to openly expressing affection towards her best friend. (Of course, drunk Juliet was a completely different story.) 

“Really,” she confirmed smoothly, thoughtful for a moment. “I’ve got to make the most of this reunion, because there won’t be another one for a while.” She smiled at him then, almost shyly. “Seeing as I’ll be staying in Asphodel indefinitely.” She waited for his reaction, lighting biting her lower lip, hands clasped in front of her. It was a rare show of nervousness, one she couldn’t explain and didn’t quite care to further contemplate an explanation for. 

But the moment ended as suddenly as it started, and she lunged forward at him for a second time, using the distance to gain enough momentum to actually take him down. 

“Unless you’ve replaced me in the time I’ve been gone,” she glared, half joking and half serious, ready to deal a death blow — as ready as she always was, really. 

-

Levi let out a huff of laughter, smothered behind his hand because he knew an obvious expression of his joy would only make Juliet scamper away. Still, he couldn’t help the warmth that lit up his eyes, a fondness born from too many years of shenanigans and misadventures. Many friendships built in high school rarely did last, but he always liked to think they were the exception. 

“The best news I’ve heard all day.” He ruffled her hair affectionately, giving up on tempering his reaction and tugging her towards him as he pressed a brief kiss against her temple. Let her fight him on his big, soft sentimental feelings - he was entirely used to it anyway.

Clean up? Seriously? Max didn’t say anything right away, just kept a charming smile as he bounced the goat up and down a little. He might be holding it against his suit, which was already a disaster, but helping with the clean up in a town that wasn’t his. Oh dear lord no. Yet, he noted the other, mostly concluding he had no idea who this person was, and what position he held within the town. He was cleaning up, so that either put him at the bottom of the food chain, or someone higher up who wanted to show off. Max needed to be careful this early on, not make enemies of people just yet, be flawless in his charm and kind in his manner. It was how he would survive, how chaos would be even more promising. 

His smile was grand, as if the offer was something he had already considered, and he would gladly help once he put the goat down somewhere where it was safe. He petted the goat in his arms, getting a blech in return, which was neither positive nor negative. “Of course, it would be an honour. Where can I set this little one down then? He’s dangerously interested in eating plastic.” 

-

“An honour?” Levi was often the soul of congeniality, but he was tired and he was dirty and having a complete stranger tell him it was an honour to help clean up the mess his cousin and her friends would honestly raise some brows - even his. 

Honestly, if his aunt hadn’t fetched Josephine and given her a stern talking to with him hovering with his arms crossed in the background, the beginnings of his headache wouldn’t have diminished to only a dull throb right about now.

“But yeah, I’m sure we can find a place for your little buddy here.” Levi’s eyes softened slightly as he gave the goat a small pat on the head. It wasn’t their fault after all - they were as scared as much as the crowds of panicked people earlier ( the very same people that could deal with these animals when they were corralled away behind a fence but not when they decided to turn the tables around and pet them. Honestly. )

She glared at the sound of his nicknames for her, leaning forward and chomping down on his shoulder — not hard enough to hurt, but with enough enthusiasm that he would know exactly how she felt about how insistence on poking fun at her height. It was a habit that she’d developed early on in their friendship, as he had a plethora of advantages on her when it came to fighting. But thankfully, she had one advantage to rule them all: her shamelessness. 

“You were supposed to make me fly,” she huffed, stepping back for just a moment before she stepped forward again to pull him into a hug. “I missed you, Jeanie,” she mumbled into his shirt, glad to be in the comfort of his familiar warmth. 

But not glad enough to play nice, because in the next moment she slacked against him, intending to use her deadweight to bring him down and knee drop him. 

“Did you just bite me?” Levi spoke incredulously, as if Juliet hadn’t regularly resorted to such tactics when she was cornered in a fight. He’d sparred enough with her to be quite intimate with some of her dirtier tricks. He supposed it was fair, given he exceeded her by both weight and height, people often poking fun at their physical differences back in high school (when Juliet naturally was not in earshot.) 

Then she stepped forward and pulled him into a hug, and he resisted the urge to crush her to him, bury his face in her hair and stay in that moment forever. God, he missed his best friend so damn much. Yet while he was open to her about nearly everything, the fact that he wished she wouldn’t leave so often was something he’d always kept to himself. “I’ll take note of that next time then.” He chuckled, parting just so he could flash his pearly whites in her direction. “Missed you too, Midge.” 

Then, as was their norm, he felt the sudden shift in her stance - the instinct ingrained into his very muscle. Levi fell with her, positioning his shoulder so he could roll forward, disengaging from her lock easily. He threw a look her way. “Really, Tinkerbell? After we just reunited?” 

“Not only,” Uly said with a grin. He didn’t feel like explaining the whole mental road that got them to making the decision, so instead he just focussed on the wallet and eyed the box. 

The offer that followed was not one they had been expecting, it came a little out of nowhere and gave them pause. Part one of a gift basket? But that wasn’t what shut them up though, it was the sudden revelation that the other knew who they were. That they were a young doctor. They cocked an eyebrow, trying to recall this person, trying to figure out where they knew him from. He shook his head, because no, his brain was not going to help him today. “Sounds great.” 

Just a few words to get their mind back in order. “I’m going to probably make a fool of myself now, but clearly you know who I am, and I am incredibly, perhaps even disastrously, bad with faces and names. I recognise you, but I have absolutely no clue from where,” they said, hoping they wouldn’t cause harm with their admittance. 

“No worries, no worries.” Levi said easily, waving away their concern, his grin wide and honest. They were new to the hospital after all, so they probably weren’t privy to the same news or information about other personnel as he was. After all, Levi was an important cog in the inner workings of Sacred Heart’s rather robust gossip circles - it was no wonder why Ulysses was lost in comparison. 

“Levi Carstairs. Physical therapist by day, bakery employee and personal trainer also by day.” He stuck out his hand to introduce himself, his good cheer never flagging. “You’ve been somewhat of a hot topic at the Hospital right now, I’m afraid, which was how I knew who you were. New, talented doctors tend to have that effect.”